You diet. In fact, you couldn’t eat healthier if you tried. You exercise – every day. You cannot lose weight. There isn’t much that is more frustrating than this, but the problem could be within your body rather than your willpower. There are physical conditions that actually prevent you from losing weight no matter what you do, and we test you for these conditions when you come to us for a customized weight loss program. Let’s talk about the four most common weight loss preventers below.
1. Adrenal Dysfunction
Also called adrenal insufficiency, the adrenal glands are located on top of your kidneys and they produce two hormones: cortisol and aldosterone. Adrenal Insufficiency comes in two forms. The first one is primary adrenal insufficiency and this is also called Addison’s Disease. Addison’s Disease means your adrenal glands have been damaged and have stopped producing both hormones. Secondary adrenal insufficiency stops the production of cortisol only, and both insufficiencies produce excess belly fat.
2. Food Intolerance
You may also have a food intolerance of which you are not aware. Dairy, gluten, soy, or other food intolerances can make it impossible to lose weight because your digestive system cannot process the foods properly once they reach your stomach. This can cause constant bloating and other weight problems. It can also cause extreme discomfort in your digestive system all the time. We will conduct a food intolerance test to see if you test positive for any food types, such as a gluten intolerance.
3. Hormone Dysfunction
As we age, we produce fewer hormones than we did when we were young. Unfortunately, this means excess fat around the belly. In fact, men often experience weight gain when they begin to produce less testosterone, and women often experience weight gain when they begin to produce less estrogen and progesterone. In addition, as discussed above, you may be producing less cortisol which will also increase your weight. We will test your hormone levels to see which hormones need to be balanced.
4. Thyroid Disease
Finally, if you suffer from hypothyroidism, this means your thyroid is not producing enough thyroid hormones. Unfortunately, one of the most common signs of hypothyroidism is obesity. Many things can contribute to hypothyroidism including an autoimmune disorder such as Hashimoto’s disease, radiation therapy for thyroid or another cancer, and surgical removal of the thyroid. Many of our patients suffer from hypothyroidism, and this is why they cannot lose weight no matter how much they diet.
Schedule an appointment with us today if you are having difficulties losing weight. As we mentioned above, part of customizing a weight loss program for you is investigating everything that we have discussed above to get to the true source of your weight problem.
